At lunchtime, she headed down to the restaurant. The staff ate in the big kitchen, separately from the guests. She said a quick hello to the other diners and asked for a salad to go. Some guests were lounging on the terrace, live music their entertainment for the afternoon. She looked for Sean, but he wasn’t manning the bar.
Back at their hut, she found him still fast asleep. Slipping in quietly, she pulled on her bikini in the bathroom and took the beach towel provided by the resort. She found a flat rock in the sun in front of their terrace and sat down to eat at the edge of the water. When her lunch was finished, she lay down on her stomach and closed her eyes. The rock slab was warm beneath her, and the sun shone down on her back.
This was heaven.
Sean woke in a cold sweat from his dream. It was too hot in the room. There was no ventilation, not even a breeze. He checked his watch. Hell, it was half past one. He’d overslept, which meant he’d missed the boat and the opportunity for Asia to escape.
It was dark inside the hut. All the shutters were closed. No wonder he hadn’t woken up. He rubbed his hands over his face. The exhaustion of too many sleep-deprived nights had caught up with him.
He needed to ask Leona when the next boat was due. While he was at it, he’d better get a bite before the kitchen closed. Maybe he’d still catch Asia there. He threw the sheet off his naked body and pulled on his swimsuit.
Outside, he stopped in his tracks. Asia was sprawled out on her stomach in front of their veranda at the edge of the water, her legs slightly parted. He made his way down the path and paused over her. Her face was turned to the side, her breathing peaceful. Long, blond lashes curled over her cheeks. One arm was bent, her hand laying next to her face. Once more, the dainty flowers and blue varnish on her nails caught his attention. He trailed his eyes over her shapely body. The freckles on her shoulders mirrored those on her cheeks. Her back was toned, tapering down to narrow hips and a round ass that nicely filled her bikini briefs. Tearing his gaze from her ass, he noticed that her pale skin had already turned a bright shade of pink.
He crouched down and wiped the curls from her face. “Wake up, kitten.”
She stirred and made a protesting sound.
Shaking her lightly, he repeated, “Wake up.”
Her lips curved into a sleepy smile as she stretched like a content little cat. Slowly, she lifted her lashes. When she stared at him with those pretty spearmint green eyes, something stirred in his gut. A woman who’d just woken always awakened a longing inside of him for something he couldn’t name.
“Hey,” she said, her voice husky in the aftermath of sleep.
Yeah, he wanted that husky, preferably in his bed, preferably the first thing he heard when he opened his eyes. Maybe that husky voice would be hoarse from screaming with pleasure all night and that green stare would expel his bad dreams. He’d give all he had for one night of peace and a morning of waking with this feisty kitten. Well, almost—all except the bar—but fuck him if she wasn’t every elegant law of science and nature ever been formulated.
The perfect beauty and balance of the universe never ceased to amaze him, but she was above any of it, at the top of the list. Right there, between her slender thighs, she held the law of universal gravitation, because he was gravitating to her in a way that would bring him to his knees so fast, he’d defy Newton’s calculation. Her core, hot like the center of the earth, was so close, but like the peace he was after, just out of reach. It only made him want it more.
He shouldn’t touch her, and yet, he couldn’t help himself. Tracing a line down her spine, he swallowed away the tightness in his throat. “You’re burning.”
She rubbed her eyes and craned her neck to look over her shoulder. “Ah, darn it.” She sat up. “I fell asleep.”
“You should put on sunblock.”
“I was only going to stay for ten minutes.”
He straightened and held out his hand. When she placed her palm in his, he pulled her to her feet. Heat came off her skin. He held her a second longer than needed, but it was too damn tempting not to. She was cute, cocky, clever, strong, and extremely loveable. Looking down, his gaze fixed on the tempting cleavage a mere inch away from his chest. He wanted those perfect breasts pressed flat against his body. He wanted her blue nails with the white daisies on his back while she panted underneath him. He wanted to know what she sounded like when she was seconds away from an orgasm, to hear the sounds she made when she came, to see the look in her eyes in the moment of her release, and to feel her hot and wet around him. Then he wanted her to curl up in his lap and purr like the kitten she was. Maybe most of all, he wanted to fall asleep with her and see that soft look in her eyes when she opened them in the morning. He’d take it all, everything she’d give. So would Juan. He knew that look in a man’s eyes. That look spoke of desire, possession, and unwavering intent.